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List of Linux friendly Kickstarter projects

04-08-2012, 11:41 PM

Hi all,

Not sure how many of you have been following the kickstarter projects, but I believe I can see a big potential for a linux gaming future coming from the projects being crowdfunded on there. I was hoping to start this forum thread to:
1) Raise awareness about some of the linux friendly projects on kickstarter and getting a quick reference list of available projects
2) Hopefully this will help increase the pledges on some of the more promising projects that have agreed to support linux.
3) Increase the amount of linux community presence on the kickstarter forums, which again will increase visibility for linux and help it be supported at release with new projects!
4) Promote discussion about linux friendly game devs, perhaps even mentioning projects that look like they'd be willing to support linux if the community can rally and provide some incentive.

Just to briefly touch on why I see a lot of potential on this:
* We've already proved through HIB that Linux users are ready to be a market for games and we'll put our money where out mouths are
* By increasing our visibility to up and coming game devs they will be more likely to consider linux a first release platform as it will be in the forefront of their minds based on the outpouring of support for linux for their previous releases (or by just browsing other kickstarter project comments)
* If they develop engines to support linux from the start, it will be easier for them to CONTINUE to release for our platform if they develop other games based on the same engine. I think this is a BIG plus for the bigger titles coming from kickstarter that I don't see mentioned by a lot of people yet.
* Assuming the steam/source release for linux is credible as it appears to be so far, this would be the perfect time to rally as a community and get as much game dev support for linux as possible, to allow a bigger game library to be available for our platform of choice. Even if you're against steam for their DRM, the more developers that support linux the better things will be for us across the board (e.g. better closed driver support, potentially more commits to opensource drivers aswell by invested devs etc).

So just to start this off, some of the projects I've come across that have announced linux support on kickstarter:
* Wasteland 2 - inXile entertainment (ends April 17)
* The Banner Saga - Stoic (ends April 20), however they appear to have committed to a post-release client.
* Nekro - darkForge (ends May 4)

And guys, I've been a long time lurker here, and am starting to be a bit more active on the phoronix community. I have seen a million times how quickly the threads on here get derailed and turned into something completely different and usually with very negative comments... I'm hoping for once we might be able to try and stay positive and on track on this thread, though that's probably just wishful thinking

Anyone else got any linux friendly kickstarter projects they want to add to the list, or devs that they think could be convinced to do a linux port?

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Shadowrun Returns - refusing to support Linux (FAQ, latest update). Yes, even when they reach almost 200% of goal. Many angry Linux gamers in comment's. They promise explain this decision later.

I have been following this too, initially I pledged on their second update when they went from "Linux is possible but can't commit to it" to "Linux support is definitely on the table!". I decided to withdraw my pledge after they announced they are not supporting it, as I didn't really have too much interest in the game in the first place and wasn't happy with the misleading second update. I'll be watching to see if they'll end up setting a target >1M for a potential linux port though due to the backlash, though I'm not sure I want to donate now with all the other projects available.

Are you sure about this one? The dev does seem linux friendly and is aware of WINE (based on some of the comments), but his first update just says they are considering Mac/Linux as a platform as far as I can see - with no definite support announced yet. I'll be keeping an eye on this one though anyway as it's a genre I used to love!

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I'll be watching to see if they'll end up setting a target >1M for a potential linux port though due to the backlash

One backer say right words about "$1M for Linux port" proposal:

I don't understand why a Linux version "would cause us to lose focus on the game you reacted to so positively". but a Mac version for only $25k over your base goal is OK. Particularly since part of what I reacted positively to *was* the statement that "Linux support is definitely on the table".

I think a clear explanation is owed us as to why OS X support is in scope at $25k, but Linux support is beyond it even at $1M.

Are you sure about this one? The dev does seem linux friendly and is aware of WINE (based on some of the comments), but his first update just says they are considering Mac/Linux as a platform as far as I can see - with no definite support announced yet. I'll be keeping an eye on this one though anyway as it's a genre I used to love!

Oh, you are right, my bad. But it's too late to edit post.

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I don't believe they can possibly explain it in a way that will placate anyone that backed purely for the potential of a linux port. Most of us are aware that the majority of the "hard work" porting a game to linux is already done when it already has an OpenGL renderer and is ported to a unix based system like Mac OSX. I bet they'll just focus on the 'too many distros to support' rhetoric that comes out of developers with little or no linux experience which could cause even more backlash on their comments section - but we'll wait and see I guess

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I'm looking forward to the 'Takedown' game. I remember SWAT. (sigh) AI throwing pyrotechnics three inches inside the door and don't arrest or report enemies when in a room full of them. Did those guys have any self intuitive?

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I don't understand why a Linux version "would cause us to lose focus on the game you reacted to so positively". but a Mac version for only $25k over your base goal is OK. Particularly since part of what I reacted positively to *was* the statement that "Linux support is definitely on the table".

I think a clear explanation is owed us as to why OS X support is in scope at $25k, but Linux support is beyond it even at $1M.

If they don't have a dedicated Linux guy on staff and Linux is not making up as significant of a user base as Mac is, it makes perfect sense. These small Kickstarter games have very, very small amounts of manpower, a very tight budget, and hence a very tight deadline. If Valve needs to pull in outside expertise for Linux despite having some of the best game devs around on their payroll, how easy do you think it is for a small indie firm to handle these extra ports?

Remember, the goal of a Kickstarter is not to fund the entire game. It's to kick start the funding. Aside from the little bit of cash they get from Kickstarter, they're looking at future sales figures of the titles, other VC funding, and so on to pull the games into profitability. When looking at a checklist of things to do to maximize return on investment, Linux support is not going to be near the top of said list.

Of course promising Linux support and then cutting it is uncool. If they said "Linux is on the table" however, then they never said it was a sure thing. Pulling your funding is fine and totally in your right; bitching at them for breaking promises they never made is just annoying, and at best all it'll do is make sure they never even mention Linux again.

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I do not think it is off topic, but I have a game on IndieGoGo, first I went to put on Kickstarter, but since I do not live in the USA, I could not put it. I live in Spain (Canary Islands). My game is made for android but I want to export to other OS, Linux in the first place, because it is the system I use, then another OS ...
links:Flamma - IndiegogoFlamma - Google play

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If they said "Linux is on the table" however, then they never said it was a sure thing. Pulling your funding is fine and totally in your right; bitching at them for breaking promises they never made is just annoying, and at best all it'll do is make sure they never even mention Linux again.

I just read through the 50 most recent comments on the Kickstarter page, and I didn't see anyone bitching about broken promises (but I could have missed them - I'm kind of punchy at the moment).

The way the situation appeared to me was that the Shadowrun people said "hey, we're considering Linux" and the Linux community perked up and offered money in the hope that they would be swayed into doing the port. Then when the developers poo poohed the Linux port, the Linux backers rightfully withdrew their funding and expressed disappointment. I saw no one raising the roof, swearing, or otherwise being rude about it.

The only people I remember doing the bitching were a very few Windows and Mac users who were disparaging Linux users for downgrading or withdrawing their pledges before the devs revealed their "carefully considered reasons" for not supporting us (which I am very much looking forward to reading, by the way.) Personally, I don't think it matters why they're not doing it - "you're not getting the game" is still "you're not getting the game", and funding a project in which you have no vested interest doesn't make a lot of sense.